Reflection
by Xema088
Summary: What happens when perfect twins, Rin and Len Kagamine, start to descend down different paths?
1. Chapter 1

Reflection

What happens when perfect twins, Rin and Len Kagamine start to descend down different paths?

Rin set her tray next to her brother, Len. It was already halfway through the first day of High School and so far, the twins haven't been in any classes together. Rin was starting to worry.

"Rin! Finally! I've been waiting for like...5 minutes" Len laughed, Typical of his easy-going attitude. Rin, on the other hand, was in no mood for jokes.

"Len, I'm worried."

"Why?" The boy quickly stopped laughing. He hated when his sister was in distress.

"What if we don't have any classes together?"

Len wrapped his arms around the small girl's shoulder. "Don't worry. Even if we aren't in the same class, It's not like we'll never see each other."

The blond-haired girl looked at her tray, poking at a pea with her fork, "I know but..."

A preppy green-haired girl took a seat in front of Len "My favorite twins." Miku smiled, "You guys in any classes yet?"

"No...not together. I have Math with Luka, though." Rin answered.

"Aw. Well, the day's only halfway gone. You still might have one together."

A pink haired girl sat beside Miku. "Hey Luka!"

"Hey Miku. Rin, Len." She smiled at all of them. Miku searched the cafeteria for someone. Rin glanced at her brother, who mindlessly stared at the Girl of Green. Despite how she felt about classes, she allowed herself to giggle. _Is he... hehe they've been friends forever. Is he really falling for-_ She laughed again.

Miku sighed. "I guess he's not here."

"Who?" Len asked.

"Gukapo...I haven't seen him all day. You think he's sick or something?"

"I...I hope not...uh" _He's stuttering. Oh my... this is insane._ Rin stared at her brother. Part of her wanted to laugh, the other part was getting worried.

"Len...Can I talk to you? Alone?"

"Of...Of course."

The table they were at was empty, so Rin led the boy to the far end of the table and sat down. "Do you..._like_ Miku?"

"Well sure. We've been best friends kindergarten. Why wouldn't I like her?"

"No I mean- _like_ like. You know...In _that_ way?"

"Wha-" Len was at a loss. He looked down. "Well..."

The young girl knew exactly what was going on. "Well..?"

"Maybe...Maybe I do _like_ her" Len shot up and looked his sister in the eye "Or Maybe you're _crazy_."

"What?" Len wasn't usually like this. The sudden anger took Rin by surprise.

"Why in the world would you think that? Miku's my _friend_! Nothing more. _ At all_!"

"Len- calm down!"

"Don't tell me to calm down!" Something had gotten into Len's head. Something unnatural for the boy. Something that made him furious. Poor Rin had no idea what had just happened.

"I've been practically your _slave_ since Middle School! Agreeing with anything and everything! EVERY crazy little idea you've ever gotten in your head! I went a long with it! You know why? Because not every one in the world has the patience to deal with it, Rin! I want to protect you, to make you feel like you're not alone! But then you get this crazy idea that I'm falling in love with one of my best friends? I've had it! My patience is _gone_, Rin!"

"Len..."

Her brother took a deep breath, then saw Rin's eyes. Saw how scared she was, how close she was to tears. The boy's head fell into his hands, and he cried. "I'm sorry...I'm sorry..." He repeated it over and over again. Rin moved around the table and sat next to her twin. She wrapped her arms around him and wouldn't let go, doing her best to comfort Len. They sat like that until lunch was nearly over.

Rin thought back to when they were younger. They would play and eventually get into a battle with each other. Soon after they would make up, and play again.

They fought, yes, but even while they were fighting, if anything at all even slightly threatened her, Len would protect her. He was right about everything he'd just said. Rin always had crazy ideas and wanted to tell someone about it. Miku and Luka, although they were friends with Rin, didn't have the patience to listen to the strange things she wanted to say. Len was the only one who would listen to her, and now he had broken down, yelled at her, and spoke nothing but the truth. He was always so patient with her. All the times he'd want to go and do something else, he would stay with his little sister. It's why he hung out with the girls all the time, he couldn't bear to leave Rin alone in the world.

_He doesn't think I can handle it. Being alone. He thinks I can't protect myself._ She was growing angry, but rather than getting mad, she saw an opportunity.

_It's _good_ that we aren't on any classes together. I can show him that I don't need protection. Once he sees that, he wouldn't feel like he has to be with me all the time._

Unlike earlier, she was now hoping that it would stay this way. No classes together for the whole school year. None at all.

"...you're right." after 20 minutes of nothing but Len's crying, Rin finally spoke.

"Wha-what?"

"You're right" She sat up, letting go of Len, who looked up at her.

"i _do_ have crazy ideas, and all this time you're the only one listening to me." She looked at her brother. "You felt the need to protect me, like I couldn't be alone in the world."

"Rin, that's not what I meant." he wiped away the tears " I was just blowing off a little steam, okay? I've had a rough morning."

"Either way, _you're right_. And you know what? We don't have any classes together, so this is perfect. I can prove to you that I can take care of myself."

"Wait, what? No, you don't need to prove anything. I know you can handle being alone, Rin. The problem is me..._I_ can't be alone."

"Yes you can, and this is the year that you'll prove it to yourself. We both will. We can handle being without each other for a year, right?"

"I-"

"We can. And we will. We can't change it anyways, so why not make the best of it?"

"Rin, I don't know"

"We'll still see each other at lun-"

"What if we don't?"

The twins went silent. _What does he mean? Of course we will- right?_

"What if we don't, Rin? We might get so caught up in being with others, that we get sick of seeing each other. We make new friends and spend all night talking to them rather than each other."

"...Well I guess we'll wait and see."

The sharp sound of the bell bit in to their conversation. The twins grabbed their things and began to go their separate ways when Len said "Love you, Rin"

"Love you too." just before Len left, the blond-haired girl hugged him. "See you tonight"


	2. Chapter 2

Part 2

Miku took a seat on the first row, far corner of the _Literary Arts _class, AKA reading AKA writing AKA English. She stared out the window for a bit. Kids who still haven't gotten to class yet were walking around, searching for the right hallway.

Hardly anyone has entered the room yet. Just her and a couple of kids Miku didn't know. The others didn't seem to know each other either so no-one was talking. It was practically silent.

She pulled out a piece of paper. An idea for a new song had popped into her brain, and the words simply _must_ be written.

_Silence is a song_

_no words, no music_

_yet it's as beautiful as ever_

Okay, so maybe it wasn't cut out for a new song. Or maybe it was. There wasn't enough to it to be a song right now, but maybe just a sweet free-verse poem would suffice. This was _Literary Arts_ class after all, a good poem or two before the class begins may score her a few extra points with the teacher...The teacher who wasn't in the room yet.

Under normal circumstances, this would be an opportunity for freedom that nobody could turn down. However, the room was still mostly empty and nobody knew anybody. Bored out of her mind, The preppy green-haired girl decided to kill a few minutes by doodling on the paper. She drew a fox, then added a clock. The fox ran directly into the clock, trying to kill time. It reminded her of the Stupid Fox Comics she had seen online.

A few more doodles of herself as a chibi, a mic and some music notes, maybe draw a hand or two (she was an exceptionally good artist. Hands, however, were insanely hard to her. Practicing couldn't do harm, right?) After about 5 minutes, Miku glanced at the door to see a familiar face with blond hair. She smiled

"Len!" She called,breaking the silent spell that had been cast over the room. Well, she more or less tore the 'spell' to shreds, and stomped on them. She was loud.

Len walked over to her "Hey, Miku."

"I'm SO glad I saw you, I've been wondering about something since lunch."

"Yeah? What?"

"What happened with you and Rin? You guys left, and I saw you getting mad at her for something, then crying. What happened?"

"Oh...We kind of... fought"

"No way. You guys haven't done that since...like... fifth grade."

Len almost laughed. "he- yeah"

"Well?"

"Well what?"

"What happened?"

"Oh...I got kind of...tired of Rin's crazy ideas. You know how she is. She thought that I was falling in love with yo-"

Miku didn't know weather to laugh or to be shocked. An answer soon came "Why?"

"Well, uh, I might've been...staring. At you." Miku's silence urged Len to continue. "It's not 'cause I like you- at least not in _that_ way. I just thought...something seems-"

"Good afternoon class." The teacher had silently entered the room, and the sudden loud, deep, voice had startled nearly everyone. The bell rang just after, and all was silent.

The man at the front of the room looked strict, harsh, and angry at the kids for something they didn't do- _couldn't_ have done. He wore a neutral expression, yet stood tall and strong.

His face lightened almost immediately. "I'm Kaito. As you probably know, I'm your _Literary __Arts_ teacher. I want to have a great year with you all. But first- I want to get to know you, and I want you to get to know each other. For this entire period you're aloud to chat with your classmates, just keep the noise at a suitable level. I'll be coming around to chat with you all. Move the desks however you like, just return them to their original places at the end of class.

The blue-haired man then went to his desk to fill out some papers before he started talking with kids.

"Huh. Waddaya know? Anyways, something seems...?" Asked Miku

"Oh right. Something seems different about you, I just can't figure out what."

Miku thought for a moment. She opened her mouth to say something, but was interrupted by the door creaking open.

"Hello?" Asked Kaito.

"I'm very sorry, Sir. I was on the other side of the school and it was crowded.. I'm sorry for being late." It was a young girl, a bit smaller than most. She had long, straight brown hair and was wearing the school uniform, but it's main colors were slightly different from most. She chose a mix of black (The required color) purple, and light blue rather then black and one, solid color. He clutched her books tightly to her chest,and looked scared.

"Well, don't make it a habit. Take a seat wherever you choose, get to know some people- is there anyone you know?"

Without looking, the girl shook her head. "My family moved here two weeks ago. I don't know anybody." She looked directly at the teacher. "My name is Shizuka, but I prefer simply Shi...Actually, I don't mind what you call me."

Keito looked at her for a moment. "Well, Shi, I think you should meet someone." He placed an arm on the girl's shoulder and scanned the room. He noticed a small pair at the far end of the room. A girl with long, green pigtails and a boy with spiky blond hair. Both were looking at him.

"How about those two, over there?" Shi fallowed his finger to the pair, and nodded.

"Yes, Sir." She walked across the room, with Keito not far behind. "h-hello." Shi said nervously.

"Hey! I'm Miku!" The green-haired girl stretched her hand toward the new one who ,after a bit of hesitation, lightly smiled as she took it.

"I'm Len. You are?"

"Shizuka...some call me Shi"

Kaito was listening, then noticed a dispute break out withing another group. "You get acquainted. I'll return shortly to get to know you all." He smiled gently at the three then left. Miku, though eager to get to know Shizuka, continued her conversation with Len.

"Anyways, I got new headphones. That might be what you were talking about."

Len took a closer look. "Oh yeah, I think that's it." Miku now had black and white headphones, sort of forming a checkerboard pattern.

"They're pretty." Shi said softly. She glanced at Len, who also wore headphones. She placed her hands over her ears, feeling left out. Len noticed the girl's actions but resolved not to say anything for 2 reasons. 1: he had no idea what he would say, and 2: Keito had begun role call and Len wanted to listen for his name.

"Tsubaki Utada"

"Here!"

"Miku Hatsune"

"Kon'nichiwa!"

"Len Kagamine"

"Hither"

_Len Kagamine_, Shizuka thought. _Why does that sound so familiar?_ "

"Shizuka Namuri"

"Here."


	3. Chapter 3

Part 3

The bell rang, and Miku waved goodbye to Len and Shi. She made her way down the hallway to her next class, Science. Shizuka, noticing that Miku was going the same way she was, ran to catch up with her new friend.

"Miku! Hang on!"

Miku paused and smiled. "You going this way, too?" Shi nodded. "I have Science next."

"Me...Me two," Shi, with her relatively small body, had trouble going down the halls. Miku noticed this along with something else.

"Hey! It's Rin! C'mon, Shi. You have to meet her." She pulled Shizuka onto her back and rushed through the crowd to catch up with her friend.

"Miku?"

"Hey! Len was just in my last class. He told me what happened with you two." Miku was still holding Shi on her back.

"Uh...Miku?"

"Oh. Right." She let go of Shizuka.

"Len..." Rin looked at her feet for a while, then snapped back up, ignoring Miku's "Sorry"

"So who's this?" She looked at Shi.

"Shizuka. Erm...Shi, for short. I take it you're Rin?" Rin nodded."See, I'm new to the town."

"Really?" An idea hit Rin "Hey, maybe you could spend the night at my house. Like a welcome party."

"Uh...Sure. Thanks." Shi was still having struggles to both walk through the halls and look directly at Rin.

"Awesome! Miku?"

"Sorry, I'm grounded."

"You? Grounded?"

"Heh. You know me. I'm not the most organized girl in the world." Rin had to admit it was true.

"Alright then. My house tonight, Shizuka."

"Shi..."

"Right. Shi."

They went down the final turn. Just as Miku and Shi were about to enter Science, and Rin was about to enter History, Shi grabbed Rin's sleeve.

"Can my sister come, too?"

"Of course! The more the merrier!" Rin smiled and left. She wouldn't say it, but she felt bad for Len. He had no clue about tonight's sleepover. _Poor guy. Even more girls coming over. He's already been the only boy forever...I probably should've talked to him about this._ She shook the thought away as class began.

**Sorry it's short. The next one will make up for it**


	4. Chapter 4

Part 4

Later that night~

"Sorry I'm late, Rin. I stopped by the ice-cream shop." Len said as he entered the house

"That's cool." Rin replied, not looking up from the pizza she was decorating.

"Wait...You're making dinner?"

"Uh...sort of...How was school?"

"School was school as always. You should know."

Rin smiled to hide her frown. Len had absolutely no idea that friends were coming over. Would it be a problem? She shouldn't have done this right after their fight. But the poor girl was practically alone. And so -in a way- was Rin. Friendship couldn't do harm, right? She sighed. "Len?"

"Yeah?"

"Don't hate me for this, but I might've invited a friend or two over to spend the night." Len stared at her, slightly puzzled.

"Why would I hate you for that?"

"Um...It's just...after the 'fight' we had." Her chest felt heavy. _Is he mad? He doesn't seem to be..._

"Oh. Don't worry about it. As long as they're sleeping in your room." He chuckled.

"Well, _duh_." She playfully slapped him.

"Hihi...just make sure there's plenty of pillows around."

"Wha-?" Len had grabbed a pillow and was holding it like a weapon. "Oh-ho. You're on!"

Rin ran to the living room and leaped onto the couch. Grabbing the nearest pillow she could find, she threw it at Len. Rin tackled him and they fell onto the floor which, thankfully, was carpeted. Rin shoved a pillow in her brother's face, which resulted in Len weakly fighting back, then pretending to die. At that point, someone knocked on the door. Thanks to a certain someone *cough*Len *cough* the door wasn't fully closed and opened with ease. A relativity small girl with long brown hair entered. "Hello? Is this the Rin's hou-" She peaked into the living room.

Here's what she saw: A high-school girl with blond hair with an adorable bow on top was staring surprisingly at the girl in the doorway. She was shoving a pillow into the face of someone who couldn't be identified because they...um...well, had a pillow in their face.

"Is- is this a bad time?"

"No, Shi. We were having a pillow fight. Come on in."

"Hm firz kif?" came a muffled sound from under the pillow. Rin removed the pillow from her brother's face...A face that Shizuka easily recognized.

"Len?"

Another voice came from behind Shi. It was slightly higher. "Len?" She moved so that she could see. The girl was much younger than Shizuka. She, too, had brown hair, only hers was short and tied up in a ponytail. "Len Kagamine? Is that seriously you? And you- you're Rin?"

"Um...yes?" The twins replied in unison.

"OHMIGOSH I LOVE YOU GUYS!" She tackled Len. "You sang Aku no Musume! The evil series! And the one with riddles? Holy potatoes you guys are awesome!"

The twins looked at Shi, who explained. "I knew I've heard of you guys somewhere. Rin, Len? This is my little sister, Mio. You guys sing and post videos online, right? You and your friends?" The twins nodded. "Mio watches all of them. She's a huge fan of Vocaloid, especially you two."

While Shizuka was saying this, Mio proceeded to hug Len, who hesitantly hugged her back.

"I'm sorry. I know it was just supposed to be me, but I need to watch Mio. Mom and Dad don't get home from work until 9 or 10. I couldn't leave her alone."

Rin smiled. "It's fine, Shi." She pushed herself off the ground at walked up to her friend. "Do you want to sleep in the living room or back in my room.?"

Len immediately answered. "You're room, Rin. I don't want to have to step over you three when I wake up."

"Aw. Fine."

Suddenly, Rin remembered something that made her feel awful. _"What if we don't, Rin? We might get so caught up in being with others, that we get sick of seeing each other. We make new friends and spend all night talking to them rather than each other."_ How could she be so thoughtless as to let the _exact_ thing Len didn't want to happen, happen that very wouldn't let it go that way. She'd invite Len to join their conversations, to make sure he didn't feel left out. She glanced at her brother, who was busy talking to Shi.

"Okay..." Shi was talking, possibly trying to recap on something Len had just said. "We eat, watch a movie or two, then go back in Rin's room for the night. I guess that's simple enough. What do you think, Mio?"

Mio was climbing all over the chair. Rin ad no idea as to exactly how old Mio was, but she guessed somewhere between 7 and 9 years. "ICE CREAM!" she shouted, punching the air. Rin giggled.

"Uh...yeah, I think we have ice cream.," Len said.

"ICE CREAM!" Mio cried again...One more punching the air. _Sorry, air _Rin thought with a smile.

"So...Anyone hungry?"

This time, Mio slapped the air. She almost caused her self to fall of the chair when Len rushed over to catch her. "You're so _strong_, Len." said the little girl. He set her down on the floor.

"Uh...thanks?"

Mio rushed over to hug her big sister. "I'm sorry about her. Like I said, Mio _especially_ likes you guys" Shi picked her sister up.

"'specially Len." The girl smiled.

"Sorry." Shizuka looked at her feet.

"Hey, it's okay. Right Len?"

"Sure I guess..."

"Well, pizza's ready." Rin went back to the kitchen, where she cut up the pizza and put 2 slices on each plate...well, 1 for Mio. She took each plate to the living room where, for special occasions, they ate. Everyone chose a random seat. In the end, they sat like this:

Rin and Shi were squished up in a chair that was only just big enough for both of them. Mio was on the couch, but didn't take up much room, so Len was nearly laying down on the couch. He was only slightly sitting up because he was eating.

By browsing the TV channels, they decided that no good movies were on, at least not at the moment. So they resolved to watch Phineas and Ferb.


	5. Chapter 5

Part 5

~blah blah...they eat, watch T.V...IN RIN'S ROOM NAO!`~

Mio had fallen asleep in the living room, so Rin had carried her to the bedroom, setting her down gently on the bed. Though she was asleep, Mio had grabbed onto Len's shirt and wouldn't let go.

"Hihi...looks like someone has a little crush on you." Rin giggled as her brother tried to get Mio to let go.

Shi smiled, then went across the hall into the bathroom to change and get ready for bed. That left Rin and Len alone...not counting the sleeping Mio.

"Are you mad?" Rin finally asked. "earlier you said you didn't hate me, but are you mad at me?"

"...'Course not."

"You hesitated."

"Okay...maybe a little. But that's only because you did this right after we fought."

"I'm sorry, Len." Rin sat on the mattress she had set up to sleep on. She looked down.

"No! Don't cry! Please? I'm sorry!"

"No, Len. I'm sorry. Shi's new and I wanted to let her feel more welcome in town."

"That's fine! I just...remember how we used to stay up all night talking? I wanted you ti be able to do that with others...and I'm glad that you probably will tonight...I just...kinda...miss it." He looked down. His eyes soon wandered over to the little girl still grasping his shirt. Before he knew it, Rin was hugging him..

"We can still do that. Tonight. You can stay in here and we can talk."

"No...it's awkward with other girls around."

Shizuka had over heard the last part. "I'm sorry! I can go home if you want! It's not too late!"

"No, Shizuka." Len said. "You can stay. I didn't mean it like that. Please, stay."

_ look at him. He was supposed to stop protecting me and now he's trying to get me new friends. Why does he have to make this so difficult? _Shizuka was on the floor crying before Len even spoke. _Wow she's shy._ Without thinking, Rin went and gave Shi a hug. Ln was trying his hardest to escape form Mio.

"ugh. Why do you always get to play hero?"

"Pardon?" Rin just barely heard Len's words over Shi.

"Nothing." He poked at Mio's fingers, finally giving up. As soon as he poked her, though, Mio let go. "Shizuka...Is you're sister okay?"

"Huh?" she looked up. "I think she's healthy."

"I mean...mentally"

"Oh. Yeah, she's just young." Rin helped her up.

"You can stay, Shi." Shizuka smiled at her new friend. Len...he found himself mesmerized by her smile. It was her first _real_ smile all day, and Len could only describe it as...beautiful.

**Can anyone guess what'll happen? If you're right, you get a cookie.**

**PLEASE REVIEW!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Sorry it's been so long. I needed an idea. When I finally got one, I decided to faint. You guys missed it. I hit my head..there was blood everywhere...**

**No, I'm kidding. I just got a headache (thank god)**

**anyway, to the 2 of you who reviewed...THANK YOU! And you're both right. so smart ^^**

**Please review. I love reading them. They make me feel all warm and bubbly. lol. Maybe not that but I LOVE when ppl review. More reviews, and I'm more encouraged to continue.**

**ANYWAY, her's part 6.**

**I only own Shi and Mio.**

Part 6

~Morning

Shizuka blinked her eyes over and over again until she could finally see. She looked all around her, trying to remember the night before. Suddenly it clicked. _I'm at a friends house. I had spent the night..._ She repeated that in her head over and over again. It just barely made sense to the shy girl. She hadn't spent the night at someone else's house since she was little. She'd always been too shy to make friends.

She looked at her friend. Rin lay on the sleeping bag, her ribbon still in her hair. She'd possibly forgotten to take it out the night before. "Daddy..." came a small voice, then tears. Shi turned to the young girl who occupied the bed. Mio had curled up into a ball, tears rolling down her face. Shi followed her instincts and wrapped her arms around the girl.

"there there..." she hummed, rocking back and forth. _Poor Mio, she's already homesick_. Shi glanced at the clock to see 4:30 in deep red, glowing numbers. Shi often got up this early, despite whether she was tired or not. She started humming _Rock A-by Baby_ to her little sister, and the crying soon reduced to faint sniffles.

Once Mio was calm, Shi laid her sister back down on the bed. The brunette grabbed a small bag and went to the bathroom. So as not to wake anyone, she closed the door.

Shi dug through the bag and pulled out a hairbrush. She combed it through her tangled hair while humming. At the same time, Len had gotten up. He sleepily walked towards the bathroom and knocked on the door.

Shizuka, since she was merely brushing her hair, opened the door. The sudden light took Len by surprise.

"Oh...Sorry" The sleepy boy murdered, his eyes barley opened.

"It's alright. Did you need to...uh...go?"

Len blinked until he could see the girl. Her hair was only partly brushed, but there were few flyaways. Once Len could finally see the girl, he smiled. "No..I can wait."

Shi hesitantly smiled back. Len turned into his sisters room. He saw Mio curled up in a ball on Rin's bed, and his twin had pushed away most of the covers on her sleeping bag. Len tiredly laughed and placed a blanket over his sister...almost.

_Wait..am I...protecting her? By giving her this blanket, what would that make me? Would it be considered protective or caring? _He looked at Rin. She seemed content without a blanket. It _was_ warm out. Len paused, then placed the blanket on Rin's desk chair.

_Her ribbons._ He noticed that they were still in her hair. _If I took out the ribbons for her, that would be protecting her _things_, right? Which would be caring, not protecting...right?_ He untied the girl's hair ribbons, and placed them on top of the blanket. He almost scolded himself for being too protective of Rin. _She left in the hair ribbons because she wanted to. I should have just left them._ He took a deep breath. Shizuka interrupted his thoughts.

"Len? Um...I'm done." She entered the room, and stopped when she saw Len looking at his sister.

"Am I being overprotective of her?" Len asked.

Shi stared at him. "You...You're older, right?"

Len nodded. "By ten minutes."

"I think it's normal for older siblings to care about their younger siblings. As annoying as they may be, the connection between siblings is..._strong_." She glanced at Mio, who was currently rolling over on the bed. "Protecting them isn't bad." She mentally added, _is it?_

"Rin always gets these silly ideas. I'm worried that nobody would have the patients to deal with it." He shook his head. "I scolded her on how annoying she could be. And how I would probably be the only one who had the patients to deal with it. She got this idea...we aren't in any classes together so, yesterday she said that we should..._separate_." Len fixed his gaze on Shi. "She said we should basically leave each other alone. I shouldn't be so protective of her, and she should be...i don't know...more willing, I guess. To find others who would listen to her and...talk about silly things with her."

"You think you're overprotective, right?" Len nodded. "Well. I think you can relax some. I'd be willing to talk with her, and do stupid things." She laughed. "I've always wanted to be able to do that with someone."

Len smiled at her. "Thanks. Just...don;t feel that I'm pushing this on you or anything. I don't know. Just..."

"It's okay. I'm choosing to be her friend. Just like I'm choosing to be yours." Len pulled the girl into a hug.

"Thank you" He said.

**Sry It's short.  
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**FYI that was a FRIENDLY hug at the end there...They're just friends right now.**

**like** **I said...right NOW.**

**yeah...REVIEW**


	7. Chapter 7

Part 7

A few hours later

Rin carried a plastic bowl of cereal into the living room, where the others were watching T.V. She had been the last to wake up and one of the only two left in pajamas, her and Mio. Len was resting on the couch like he had last night. He craned his neck to see the girl, and gave her a smile. She smiled back and looked at Shi, who seemed too small for the chair she was in. Shizuka noticed Rin looking at her, and made room for her. The blond sat next to Shi and dug the spoon into the cereal.

"Morning." Len said, unwilling to strain his neck again to see her. The chair was behind him, and he didn't want to move too much.

Mio dashed into the room in a pale yellow nightgown. She ran directly to Len and sat on his stomach.

"Ow? Shi, did Mio get sugar?"

"I didn't give her any. She may have found some, though."

Len sighed and Rin giggled. Mio pet the boy's hair. "You're hair's pretty."

"Thanks..." He tried to push the girl away, but she was surprisingly strong for her age. He managed to pull out his phone and spent a moment reading something. Turning to Rin, he said "I'm going out in about an hour. Okay?" The way he turned his body to see her mad Mio loose her balance. She threw her legs under her before she could fall.

Rin paused with her mouth open and the spoon a few inches from her mouth. She held the position long enough to say "Okay," then ate the cereal.

"Promise you won't break the house?"

"You mean we can't?" Len smiled. He understood his sister's language enough to know that she never had the intention to in the first place. Rin turned slightly to see Shizuka out of one eye. "Girls day!" She said happily. Shizuka smiled.

"Can I go with Len?" Mio asked.

"Sadly no, I fear a young, beautiful girl will not be welcome with my friends. They might become horribly shy at the sight of such a wonderful princess, and jealousy will eat them alive. Literally. You don't want my friends to die, do you?"

"No, I guess not." Mio said sadly. Rin couldn't help but laugh at her brother's way of saying 'No, I don't want an eight year old stalker hanging out with me and a bunch of high school guys.'

"So, who's your new friends?" Curiosity drove Rin to ask.

"Kaito asked me and Gukapo to get ice-cream and have an- I quote- 'Dude's Day'."

The brunette tilted her head to the side. "Kaito? Our teacher?"

"Yeah. He's only a few years older- like...4 or 5 years? He got a teaching job the moment he graduated from College."

"Isn't Gukapo a Senior?" Len nodded. His twin smiled. "Aw! Len's hanging out with the big kids. He's growing up so fast!"

The boy blushed slightly at that. "H-how old do you think I am?"

"I dunno...10? 11?"

Shizuka giggled at the twins as she mindlessly hugged a pillow. "Well, I hope you have fun today."she whispered with a smile.

"Same for you girls." He said. Len thought a moment, then frowned. "I just realized...I'm the only boy... surrounded by three girls...In an empty house..."

"Someone's catching on." Rin smiled at her brother as she placed the remainder of her cerial on the coffee table. The boy strained his neck to look a her.

"Does Len have cooties?" Mio asked, looking at her sister. "Can his cooties sing as good as him?"

"My cooties can NOT sing. Trust me, I've heard them try- they sound lying dying cats."

"Oh...poor kitty..."

Len shook his head as he stood up and stretched. "I'll be in my room if you need me-"

"Kay." Rin glanced out the window at the clouds rolling in. She frowned. "Might wanna wear your hoodie today..."

Len fallowed his sister's line of sight. "Good call."

"Len-ku has a hoodie? I bet it looks so handsom on you!" The youngest wrapped her arms around Len's waist (as she couldn't reach any higher than that)

"It's just a hoodie, Mio..."

"Can you help me get some cereal?"

"I'm so sorry about her- I can do it if you want-" Shi began to push herself into a standing position.

"No- I'm already up..." With a small sigh, the boy picked Mio up and went to the kitchen.

"So...Len-kun?" Mio chirped, tightly clinging to the boy as he pulled down a small bowl.

"What?"

"I heard you were mad at Rin yesterday."

"Word travels fast..." He frowned. 'don't worry about it- I was just stressed out. School's tough, ya know?"

"I know. Len- would you ever be mad at me? Or are we best friends in the whole wild world?"

The boy looked at her "Sure, Mio...we're friends." He lied. _Somewhat...I just met the kid...Is this what all fangirls are like? Do...Do I actually _have_ fangirls?_ The more he thought about it, the more mind-boggling the concept was. When he was Mio's age, he had never expected to have fans, let alone clingy eight year old fangirls. "And I don't think I'd be mad at you- it's taken over 14 years to really get upset with Rin- and even then, I wasn't thinking straight..."

"So- you _won't_ yell at me?"

"Probably not."

"Not even if I asked you to kiss me?"

The boy blinked. _Wow...She's only eight- she should be playing with Barbies, not asking teenagers for kisses..._"um..."

"Pretty please? With cherries and whipped cream and sprinkles?"

"Now you're just making me hungry." He smiled at her. _May as well...How many more fangirls are going to ask for kisses? Is this really what it feels like...? To have fans?_ He paused his train of thought as he gave in to the girl's pleas and pecked her cheek. Mio squealed in delight and hugged him tighter.

"Thank you!"

Shizuka appeared in the door way, smiling slightly. Rin was seen behind her. "Somebody's happy..what happened?"

"Len-ku kissed me!" The child shrieked with joy. Shi looked at Len, who was now blushing to an extent.

"J-Just on the cheek!"

"Don't worry, Len- I won't tell your friends about this." Rin giggled.

"That's really sweet- you've sure made a little girl happy." Shi let out a laugh. Len paused his train of thought, listening to her voice. _That's what her laugh sounds like..._ he shook his head and poured Mio's cereal.

"I really need to get ready-" He said, trying to forget the past five minutes.

"Can I watch you?"

"Mio! He needs privacy!" Shi took her sister from the blond's arms. "I'm really sorry...I'll try to keep her away until...I'm sorry-"

"It- It's fine. Really. " the boy patted Mio's head and handed her the cereal before leaving the girls to their giggles.

**FINALLY!**

**UPDATED!**

**okay- so I thought I'd add something cutesy for this chapter. Nothing really significant to the story- just adorable 8 year old fangirishness. 3**

**I rater enjoyed writing this chapter.**

**Ah, Mio- Every Len fangirl rolled into one tiny hyperactive sugar-coated eight year old ball of cuteness. 3 3 3 (with a very short attention-span...)**

**X3**

**WRITERS BLOCK IS FINALLY BEAT!**

**NOW I CAN DESTROY THE WORLD! MUAHAHAAHA!**

**Len: Wh-what?**

**Rin: See! I told you she was evil!**

**Mio: But she called me cute. That's not evil...Unless she was lying. She wasn't lying, was she, Len?**

**Len: um...no...?**

**Mio: *huggles***

**Shizuka: ^.^ Please review, before Len's cooties start singing. ^-^'**

**Len: ...I was only joking about that...**


	8. Chapter 8

Kaito sat quietly on the street corner, just outside the ice-cream shop. He bit into the frozen treat, glancing above at the overcast. He had started to regret calling together his friends on a day like this one, cold and likely to rain. Well, the cold wasn't too bad, my it was cooler than he was used to.

The man shifted, starting to grow impatient. He glanced around, searching for Gakupo, or Len, or Piko, or anyone.

He sighed and took anther spoonful of icecream, closing his eyes as he went into his thoughts.

Like most people in the high school, Kaito had heard of Len's outburst toward his sister. Though he didn't know much about Len, he had heard talk amongst others and gathered that it was out of character for the boy, especially to be mad at his sister. His main priority for the day was to talk with Len. Being a first-time teacher, like all teachers, he wanted his student to be okay.

"Ah- Kaito, I've found you." the blue-haired man opened his eyes to see a man with long purple hair approaching him. The senior, Gakupo. If his facts were straight, this young man as the envy of his choir class as far as males go.

Kaito smiled. "Finally...please, sit down." Gakupo nodded, but instead went inside the parlor. A few moments later, he sat across the man and bit into a vanilla ice-cream.

"You wanted to talk?" The purple-haired man asked. Kaito noted he wore a serious face. He had seen that look before- it was one only given to teachers. He shook his head.

"I wanted friends. As much as I like the staff, they make me feel so...old."

"So you want to befriend your students." Kaito nodded.

"And have students befend each other-"

"What do you mean?"

Kaito smiled. "I've invited a few freshman...I hope you don't mind. I just thought- you seem to be acquainted with the school- I was hoping you might show them it's not as intimidating as it first seems."

The other laughed slightly. "Great plan, sir."

"Kaito."

"eh?"

He shook his head again. "My name is Kaito. Call me that, not sir. It makes me feel old." He laughed as well.

"You want me to call you That?" The teacher nodded. "Well, alright, That."

Kaito blinked a few times before he caught on. He smiled. Gakupo joined him, laughing playfully. Peering behind his new friend, he saw a blond boy walking up to them. He acted slightly nervous as he walked.

"Le-"

"Len!" The men looked over to see a white- haired boy running up to Len. He stopped once a few feet from the boy, smiling. Though the pairs weren't too far apart, the elders could make out the others words.

"P-Piko?"

"Man, it's been years, hasn't it?" The white-haired boy laughed. "I was just on my way to the ice cream parlor- funny meeting you here."

"I was going the same way, actually-"

"Then I'll walk with you." They took a few steps. "I'm a bit surprised you remember me..."

"Why?"

Piko shrugged. "Well, we didn't talk much. We only had one class together anyways."

"Oh...Well, I do remember you. You wrote the biggest in my yearbook."

The other laughed. "I did, didn't I? Well, I write smaller now."

Both boys had reached the parlor by now and quickly found Kaito and Gakupo looking at them. "So you know each other?" Kaito inquired.

"Two years ago- math, wasn't it?"

"I think so. That or science- it's fuzzy." Piko looked up at the men. Upon seeing Gakupo, he shrunk back shyly. The man frowned.

"Problem?"

"No-" He took a seat. "No problem- just...You're so good at singing, ya know?"

The man smiled. "Well- thanks. But you don't need to act like that."

"Yeah..."

Len turned to the purple-haired man. "I bet you have a lot of fangirls, don't you?"

Gakupo laughed. "I guess- where'd that come from?"

"Well- my friend and her sister came over-"

"Ooh, had fun, did ya?" he smirked teasingly.

Len's face turned red. "N-No! Not like that! One's my friend- we just met yesterday. The other's eight."

"Pedo."

"Gakupo-"

The man looked the eldest with a grin. "I'm kidding-" He looked back to Len. "Go on."

"Anyways...her sister kept hugging me and kept saying how she's such a big fan of me...she asked for a kiss this morning."

"So you've met your first fangirl." Kaito chuckled.

"Yeah...Does it ever feel weird to you?" He looked at Gakupo. "To have people you haven't even met asking for kisses? To get compliment after compliment?"

"You'll get used to it. With your voice, you're sure to get lots of fangirls."

Len bit his lip, not sure of whether he liked the idea. If they all were like Mio...

Piko looked down. "I..thought we'd be talking about stuff other than fangirls and singing..." The others looked at him strangely for a moment, then Kaito nodded.

He cleared his throat and spoke in his newly developed teacher-voice. "Well- as I'm sure you've heard by now, at least you freshmans, I'm sure- as word spreads quickly-...Len seemed to have gotten out of character at lunch yesterday."

Gakupo nodded. "I've heard."

"Me too- what was that about?" Piko looked at his friend, who stared at his feet.

"Is this why you called me?"

"Actually, yes..."

Len shook his head. "It was nothing- just blowing off some steam...Wh is everybody talking about it, though? I mean- even a senior has heard about it?"

"You were kinda loud, Len. And I was sitting at the next table, so I heard every word." Piko spoke up, frowning. The blond turned away.

"That loud, huh? ….So I was a bit annoyed with Rin. And this whole high-school thing is already driving me crazy. For the first time...Rin and I don't have any classes together. It just felt really weird looking around and not seeing her there."

"The way I see it- you two are way too close." Gakupo bit into his icecream. "_way_ too close. Not having classes together shouldn't freak you out so much."

"I think you two just need space." Piko stated.

"Rin said the same thing...I just- wanna know she's safe."

"Keep acting like that- you'll get a girlfriend in no time. Girls love when guys hang onto their sisters and never let go." The purple-haired man shook his head slightly, grinning. "Speaking of which- do you like anyone, Lenny?"

Kaito glared at him as the blond blushed. "That's not what we're talking about." He paused a moment, then turned to Len. "I saw you looking at Shi yesterday- more than Miku..."

"Get on topic!" Piko giggled at his friend. Len sighed. "Whatever...so you guys really think I should give Rin more space?"

"Basically, if you don't have to see her, don't. Make some more friends, hang out with them, get a few accounts online somewhere, get a hobby..."

"Well, that might be a bit too mean." The white-haired boy stated. "She's still his sister, they can't just stop talking."

Len frowned. The others went on talking, suggesting things for Len to do, but he wasn't listening. He looked up at the sky, which seemed to grow darker by the minute. He pulled on his hoodie as he waited for the first drop of rain.

_Maybe they're right...I can be so clingy, can't I? Shi said she could be Rin's friend, then I could do other stuff...Like now. Rin, Shi and Mio are back home- probably playing something, or watching TV. They're probably doing just fine...without me._

_I guess I could give her more space. Neru's been nagging me to try dancing, I guess I could practice that instead._

_Besides, Rin's been on her own before. Like that time at gramma's- when me and dad went fishing. I hated it, but Rin seemed pretty happy when we got back._

_Rin can get along with otehrs so well- she has a bunch of friends. I need to make my own friends-_ it was then when he heard Gakupo. "I just think he should get a girlfriend. Then everything'll be fine."

He felt his face go red again at that. _A girlfriend...I don't need one- I just need regular friends..._ But he couldn't push away the vague image of a small, straight brown-haired girl.

At last, he felt the first few drops of rain hit his skin, and he found his excuse. "Guys- it's raining...I should probably head back- this was fun, though. Maybe another time?"

The others nodded and grinned and said their goodbyes and began in their own directions. Len felt a rush of relief as the world around him grew quiet except the slight rain. Hands in his pockets, Len walked on down the street, at last finding himself under an awning. He ran a hand through his dampening hair and realized that a small buzzing was coming from his pocket. Len pulled out his phone and glanced at the caller-ID.

_Rin K._


	9. Chapter 9

Part 9

about half an hour prior- after Len had left

Rin turned to her friends after she had waved Len out the door. She smiled at them, namely at Mio. "You go girl-"

The younger looked up at her, slightly confused. "What?"

"you're already getting kisses from older guys." The blond smirked. Mio giggled.

"I'm...really sorry about her..."

"It's fine-"

Mio tugged at Rin's shirt. The elder bent over some for her to whisper: "She apologizes for everything. Ust ignore it- it's really annoying,"

Rin smiled. "No it's not, it's polite." she looked at Shizuka. "So...now what?"

"Can we go through Len's stuff?"

"Mio!" a pink became visible on her pale cheeks.

"You know you want to!"

The relatively small girl turned away, still blushing. "I don't. Mom would be disappointed in you if she found out about this." The younger frowned. 'Maybe we should clean p a bit before Len comes back?"

"Oh- no!" Rininsisted. "I'll clean after you guys go home..."

but Shi was already back in the living room, folding a blanket. "It's really not a problem.

The blond shook her head. As Mio went to help her sister, she walked off down the hallway. At the end of the hallway, she saw Len's room. He had left his door open. Smiling slightly, she approached the room, ready to close it for him. But as she neared the room, her eyes fell to the floor, where several papers were sprawled out across the floor. She saw music notes scribbled on the sheets, and Len's electric piano and guitar both laid on the floor on top of papers.

Hesitantly, the girl sat on the floor and picked up a sheet of paper. She looked at it, and saw that it was sheet music, lyrics already written. "He's been writing again...all night, probably." She chuckled, glancing at the title. "Heart rate 0822..." She chuckled again. Reading the words, she quietly mumbled them to herself.

_You know, when my heart stops beating_

_I'm sure it must have fully enjoyed this world._

_I want to continue smiling by your side_

_So that I won't have any regret when the time comes._

_As long as my heart is still beating, I want to protect you._

_That's enough a reason for me to live._

_As we count the same tear over and over again,_

_We will understand each other a little more._

_My racing heartbeats tell me_

_Of these synchronizing sounds and streaming thoughts_

_Let me promise never to leave you_

_So that you won't ever have to feel lonely._

_You know, every minute,_

_My heart shou-_

"Rin?"

Rin shot up at her friends voice. She quickly wiped away the tear that had formed in her eye. "Y-yeah?"

"A-Are you okay?"

"I'm fine! Yeah-" She collected all the papers into a stack and lay them on her brother's piano. She then stood up, left the room, and closed the door.

"O...kay...Well, Mio wanted to play a game. If you don't mind-"

"Oh! Sure!" She wiped her eyes again before pushing past Shi and going to the closet. She opened the doors and looked among the shelves. "Well...How about twister?"

Shi giggled. "Well, I'll have to get Mio into her jeans, but sure."

Rin glanced at her own clothes, and remembered that she still wore her pajamas. "Tell you what, I'll get dressed, you help Mio, and we'll play in 10 minutes, okay?" Shizuka smiled and nodded, then left to get her sister.

**I've been obsessed with HeartRate #0822. Such a pretty song...**

**So many have sung it. Which cover is your favorite? Mine's between Len and that group of boys, Kony, ShounenT, and all them. Their voices are so pretty 3**

**I found the English lyrics here: ww imelyric /do ujin/vo caloid/s hinpakus uu0822.h tm (minus spaces) and thought that they went so well with Rin and Len's situation. Especially the lines "****_As long as my heart is still beating, I want to protect you._****" and "****_Let me promise never to leave you So that you won't ever have to feel lonely."_**

**Len: Wait...Rin found my song?**

**Me: No! You weren't supposed to know that yet!**

**Len: But-**

**Mio: *glomps Len* I found you! ^-^**

**Len: *sigh* Yay...**

**Shizuka: *giggle* Please review!**


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